It was such a promising morning for Spain which sold some €2.5 billion in 2015 and 2016 bonds earlier in yet another meaningless and symbolic LTRO-covered exercise, when things went from bad (bank run, pardon, withdrawal meme) to worse, as local Expansion newspaper says Spanish bank ratings will be downgraded in a few hours.

The rating agency Moody's announced this morning that the Spanish bank announced in the next 12 hours, as by law, a reduction in its credit rating could affect more than 21 entities. According to several sources, the statement will be released expected at nine in the evening.

As Standard & Poor's for two weeks, the reduction occurs automatically as a result of the downgrading of the debt of the Kingdom of Spain and not motivated by the dynamics of each of the entities. It is a performance similar to that made ??Moody's with Italian banks .

Among the arguments of the cut score are the adverse conditions facing the banking business in a macroeconomic environment of recession and the rapid deterioration that is suffering the delay.

Furthermore, for months are not entities access to capital markets, although they have settled their funding through the open bar of liquidity.

The action by Moody's is the result of a process initiated in February 2012 when he decided to check the creditworthiness of all European banks to "the adverse and prolonged effect of the crisis in the euro area and the deterioration in the rating of several European governments ". On Tuesday, Moody's downgraded the rating to 26 Italian banks , a move not sitting very well in the sector and have described as "irresponsible" given the current situation.

The decrease in the rating of Spanish banks comes at a delicate moment, just after the Government has announced the partial nationalization of Bankia and a new decree to require institutions increased provisions for possible losses in real estate.

In addition, Standard & Poor's and dealt a blow to Spanish banks two weeks ago and left several of them in junk bond levels. And back again threatens to rule later this month.

Analysts at Moody's published this week a report indicating that Spanish banks "are vulnerable to the recession and the continuing housing crisis. The problem loans and losses will continue to grow, including categories such as residential mortgage loans, loans SMEs and consumer finance segments not covered by the recent royal decree. The vulnerability of banks to these adverse conditions is a factor in revising the rating of many Spanish banks. "

No disrespect , but I wish I had an ounce of silver for every time I read that comment, and thought that same thought, over the past year. But they keep managing to pull something off and kicking the can a little further.

I don't think it's because of money printing. It's because of the citizens of the West and their growing acceptance that the State can solve any problem. In fact, to the majority, the State is the ONLY one who can solve problems. So, although anyone with an IQ over 7 can see a financial disaster in the works, they simultaneiously cling to faith in the State.

We are about to answer the question: Who best can provide for human needs - a market of free ideas and choice or the State with mounting regulations, capricious temporary laws and manipulative bureaucrats.

@ Engali - I completely agree. I'm further amazed that I still even say that phrase. You'd think that I'd be completely jaded, depressed and fatalistic by now, but apparently (subconsciously), I am not.

So, if the Euro is toast, the Pound is toast, the Yen is living in an iron lung and collectively they are all valued using an exchange rate formula of each other's perception of trust to settle, then what exactly is the $US index a measure of. I'm perplexed. Further, being the "reserve" debt ladden currency of the world, what properties give it the role of the world's monetary numeraire?

The dollar will only strengthen as other currencies hit the dust. That may infuriate a lot of ZH readers but the hard facts are that the dollar is the global currency, it can be printed and it emanates from the most powerful nation on Earth. Forget China, India, Russia, Iran and their deals. It has not (and will not) affect the status of the dollar.

The run on the dollar will begin when we can no longer buy debt at a low rate and that will not be for a LONG time since the FED is now trapped into zero interest rates for eternity.

It can certainly be printed alright, but if trust is its only redeeming property (other than a medium for exchange), that provides the basis for its "numeraire" status, then how can we measure other derivatives of it, against it? What is the implied value of an unrequited or broken pledge? Ask a Spaniard or Greek. Ask any saver. Ask any holder of a US debt.

Facebook may prove to be a fad, but it has compiled a tremendous amount of personal information on hundreds of millions of willing users. Amazing how willingly people will share a vast amount of information about themselves on a public forum.

Look on the bright side my American friends. You could be in the shoes of us brits on this side of the pond, at least you don't have fucking nick clegg as one of your representitives. Unfortunately, we fucking do.

If you don't know who he is, google him, a bigger cunt has yet to born. Two faced hypicritical bastard. He's on a par with the one eyed scotch idiot from two years ago fwiw.

5% of the people in bank lines are just there because they think the bank is giving toasters for opening an account with a minimum $100 or an automatic direct deposit ! The Spanish word for a run is "Corrida" (bull fight terminology)....when the money runs out....you may get an ear or a tail ! Monedas 1929 Comedy Jihad Slow Motion Deja Vu Crash

The biggest joke is on the central banks. What started as a brief, quick fpray (buying debt in trouble times) has evolved into the absurd situation where foreign buyers are vanishing leaving only central banks as buyers of sovereign debt. The EU's trick - "lending" banks Euros on the proviso they buy sovereign debt - is about as intellectually dishonest as it gets = especially when they keep sniveling they are not "intervening".